


First Decisive Love

by Skye



Category: Dengeki Sentai Changeman
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:23:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27580657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye/pseuds/Skye
Summary: Even though there might be consequences, she's going to face her feelings.
Relationships: Nagisa Sayaka/Tsubasa Mai
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4
Collections: Another Toku Holiday Special (2020)





	First Decisive Love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [oneatatime](https://archiveofourown.org/users/oneatatime/gifts).



The two of them spoke in close proximity. Sayaka gave all her attention to Tsurugi as they chatted. Mai noted that though they smiled and laughed once, but the conversation seemed serious, Sayaka's expression reflecting such as they began to whisper. No one nearby could listen in on the topic without a lot of trouble.

Mai thought about joining them. She could bring her own lunch to the table, disrupting whatever was going on between them. She might even tease them, breaking up the intense atmosphere along with the conversation itself. That would put a stop to this.

But Mai knew better. She wasn't _that_ immature, even though the inclination to behave this way pushed at her. She wouldn't interfere in anything. Instead, Mai sat by herself, in view of the pair. She watched them, though she tried not to make it obvious, seeing Tsurugi nodding intently as he spoke, on the back of his head visible. Sayaka seemed to force a smile. Maybe things weren't going that well for her, Mai thought.

That was, until they stood up, finished with mealtime, and Tsurugi gave her a hug. Sayaka smiled at him before going toward the door.

Mai decided to be done with her meal then as well. She hurried to Sayaka's side, all while making sure she didn't _look_ hurried. "Things picking up for you two?" Mai asked, deciding to be direct.

The statement took Sayaka off guard. "What?" she said before shaking her head, pursing her lips as she walked forward.

"Everyone's cheering for you. So, is it true or not?" Mai said, forcing a smile.

"If it was, it wouldn't be something I talked about here," Sayaka said, continuing on her way calmly.

That was enough to get Mai into a huff. She'd decided to be mature here, but Sayaka was doing so instead. Instead, it looked like Mai herself was prying. "Well, I was going to ask if you wanted to go to dinner tomorrow. But I don't want to break in to anything."

"Sounds good," Sayaka said with an upbeat tone as she turned around. "Let me know later where we'll meet." Sayaka gave Mai a smile before heading on her way.

* * *

"Hey!" Sayaka called out, waving her hand as Mai caught her eye. The other woman was dressed casually, but still cute, a white jacket and skirt. She walked up to Mai, nudging the arm of the woman who'd invited her. "Decide where we should go yet?"

"I don't know," Mai said, adjusting her dress. She's dressed up more than Sayaka, but they were both still too underdressed for some fancy restaurant, as Mai had daydreamed about earlier in the day. If she'd really wanted that, she could have asked, then made plans, reservations, and dressed properly. Instead she was left feeling kind of sheepish. What did she even expect from going out with Sayaka? They'd grown close since they were both part of Changeman, but still were just friends. "Maybe for burgers."

"Is there a place nearby?" Sayaka asked. There wasn't that Mai knew of, but Sayaka made another suggestion before she could respond. "I saw a ramen cart over there, looks good."

"That's fine," Mai said. It was better they made the decision quickly.

They wandered over to it, sitting down and making their order. It was crowded, and the other patrons, though few, were loud, so they didn't get to talk beyond some basics. As they finished, Mai paid, and then left, wandering into the cityscape now lit by streetlamps. So, nothing had really happened today, but she didn't really have anything to truly _expect_ either. There was only this sense of dissatisfaction. But they'd had a nice enough meal, if quick, and now they'd be headed home.

"So, what are you up to lately? What's your favorite hobbies?" Sayaka brought up a topic as they walked side-by-side.

"Sports," Mai said quickly.

"Oh, right. I remember you talking about that. What kind of team are you on?" Sayaka said.

"None really," Mai admitted. It wasn't like being ChangePheonix left her with time for lots of commitments.

"Oh, right," Sayaka said, as if reading her mind. "I don't have much time for a lot else right now either. I loved volleyball in high school."

"I'm good at that game. I wonder how you'd do against me," Mai teased, grinning as she met Sayaka's eye. "We could try some beach volleyball sometime."

"I'd love a beach day! It wouldn't happen for a while though, huh?"

"Right," Mai said, thinking of their current commitments as Changeman.

"We'd be cold in our bikinis now, wouldn't we?" Sayaka said.

Right, it was December. Mai pursed her lips, looking away from Sayaka as an image of them lounging in bathing suits came into her head. The idea of them going out in summer weather, in summer dress, seemed exceptionally nice, but something about it also set her on edge. The dissatisfied feeling was still there, and Mai knew it would stay there even if she agreed to go on such a nice excursion at a later date.

"What's wrong?" Sayaka asked.

Seeing her reaction had been noted, Mai had her expression go cold as she lifted up her head. "Well, I'm sure you have your own hobbies, too. What do you like to do?"

"I love stargazing," Sayaka said.

"Oh," Mai said, happy that Sayaka had changed the topic. "Well, that's something we can do now, isn't it?"

"Would you like to?" Sayaka asked right away. "I have my own schedule for it, actually, so I can see what I want, and not lose too much sleep, especially now."

Alone with Sayaka, in some kind of dark place, beautiful sights of the stars in front of them. Mai had to smile as she imagined the kind of detailed explanations the other woman might have. They might be right up close to each other, possibly alone for a while, as they shared views from a telescope.

"I didn't know you'd like the idea," Sayaka said, again reading Mai's expression.

"Oh, well, it sounds okay," Mai said, shrugging her shoulders.

"I guess I know why," Sayaka said, tapping her teammate's shoulder. "You're thinking of the doctor, aren't you?"

"Doctor?" Mai repeated.

"Right. Right. I know the general direction he went. I could get us a great view some night."

Since Sayaka could read her so well, Mai made sure to turn away as the spell of what this all really meant broke. Even so, she shouldn't hide it completely, and eventually sat down as she saw a bench, looking down before she felt a gentle touch on her shoulder. "I'm sorry," Sayaka said. "I didn't know you were still sore about it. But he was your first love, wasn't he?"

Mai couldn't even smile as she remembered the man she'd briefly known. "I guess you didn't know him that well, did you?" she said.

"No," Sayaka said.

"Well neither did I," Mai informed.

Sayaka laughed.

"What?" Mai spoke defensively.

"Oh, no, no, I didn't mean anything. Except, well, it was a first love, right? You know about young love, being, well, quick."

"Naive, maybe?"

"Well, maybe. I'm not saying anything, except that it's funny to imagine you getting caught in love up like that."

Sayaka's words seemed to tease, but her smile made it so Mai didn't feel too cross about the implication. However, that didn't mean she wouldn't respond. "Dr. Togo was exceptionally nice. Really a good man. That's why he went into space to help out with something that had nothing to do with him. He'd be a good catch for anyone."

"Of course," Sayaka goaded.

"It was really easy to like him," Mai added.

"I don't doubt it," Sayaka said.

"Yeah," Mai continued before pausing. "And now that he's in space, I don't have to deal with my feelings."

"Right. I know you were upset, but I was thinking that. A first love preserved in the stars, how nice. It's so romantic."

Mai shook her head, though mostly to herself. "Maybe," she said. "But I'd prefer being able to confess to the person I like who's still on Earth to that kind of romance."

"Is there someone you like?" Sayaka asked.

"Ah, well...." Mai trailed off.

"Sorry. You meant if he was still on Earth, right?"

"I didn't mean that," Mai said with some irritation. "Hey, Sayaka, according to you, we shouldn't talk about this."

"When did I say that?"

"Just yesterday."

"I don't remember saying anything like that."

"Well, you did then, so I shouldn't say anything more, should I?" Mai crossed her arms as they both silently next to each other, the footsteps of others nearby becoming audible in the lull. As Mai listened to a gust of wind and a car horn, she started to feel guilty. Somehow she always ended up getting into some kind of argument with Sayaka, though she much preferred when they were having more fun.

Before she could apologize, Sayaka spoke. "Oh, you mean what you were asking during work with everyone all around? That's embarrassing! Of course I can't say anything then. But now is fine."

"Okay, then how are things going with you and Tsurugi?"

"Ah- I meant for you!" Sayaka said.

"Well, I was just curious," Mai said, averting her eye contact. "Why can't you share, if you want me to?"

"It's fine if you don't want to," Sayaka said. "But Tsurugi and I, well... He's a good man himself, you know."

"Yeah," Mai choked out. She forced her gaze back to Sayaka. "The two of you are a great pair."

"It's not really like that. He's just a good friend. He even was supportive, you know, about me dealing with my own problems in this area."

"So there is someone," Mai said, standing up and smiling. "Not Tsurugi though, huh? Is it someone else we work with then? Or just someone you know?"

"Well, I'd just rather not say," Sayaka said. "I mean, there's no point in my feelings, really. It would probably be one-sided."

Mai sat down. So Sayaka could talk about this with Tsurugi but not her? She tried to quell the feelings of jealousy, recalling how intimate they'd seemed when they'd been talking. "That's stupid," she decided to say. "Why would it be one-sided? Anyone would be happy to be with you."

"Well, you know," Sayaka muttered.

Of course, Mai realized after her outburst, there were plenty of reasons. Maybe Sayaka's crush had hinted such, or already had someone. She shouldn't just jump to conclusions or deride the thought. It wouldn't really encourage Sayaka for her to just say whatever she wanted. "Well, you know, you've made the first step in admitting your feelings, to Tsurugi, to yourself, I guess to me too, even if I don't know who. That's a step beyond me over here."

"But you did admit you loved Dr. Togo," Sayaka pointed out.

"It was easy to pretend to like him especially when I found out he was going away and nothing would come of it anyway. But I can't confess when it really comes down to it, and I'd have to face a rejection." Mai clenched her fist. "Alright. I'll do it for you, Sayaka. Even though I don't think things will work out."

"Congrats," Sayaka said, her head turning downward.

Mai doubted this would cheer her friend up, but she'd already decided on it. She wouldn't back down. She put her hands on her hips and looked downward, building up the courage as she slowly forced herself to look Sayaka's way. Now was the time to say it, so she did. "Well, I think I'm kind of starting to like you. It's like with Dr. Togo, except I know you a lot better. Kind of frustrating to see you get flustered over Tsurugi or this mystery person."

Sayaka's mouth opened wide in surprise. Of course, this reaction had been expected. Mai gave an exaggerated shrug. "Don't worry, I don't really expect anything. But if I can do that, maybe you can confess to whoever's tying you in knots." Even though Mai had spoken, Sayaka was still silent. Mai waved her hand in the air. "Don't get too bothered about it! Getting wound up like I have is bound to happen with people who are around each other too much."

"No," Sayaka said, her eyes darting around before resting on Mai again. "I mean, I'm not bothered."

"Well thanks," Mai said. It was a weird thing to bring up among co-workers, especially knowing that Sayaka already had a person she liked.

"I'm happy about it, actually," Sayaka clarified.

"Don't get a big head about it either," Mai said.

"No, no. It's just, the person I like... It's you, Mai."

Now it was Mai's turn to be surprised, jumping up as Sayaka's face seemed to hide amusement at her overreaction. "You aren't teasing me, are you? I wasn't joking, you know!"

"I'm not either," Sayaka said.

"Then why didn't you tell me instead of Tsurugi?" Mai said.

"Why do you think?"

Mai realized she was staring Sayaka down, after receiving the best news in a long time. She sighed. "Well -- I'm glad to hear it."

"I am too," Sayaka said.

And then there was that silence again. The two of them sat side-by-side, not able to say much even though they knew the truth. It was just as awkward as before, maybe more so, until finally, Mai decided to break the ice.

"So, when were you going to go stargazing next?" she asked. "If it's alright, I'd love to make it a date."

"Of- Of course!" Sayaka said with a grin.


End file.
